You Win Some, You Lose Some
by themuziqlover
Summary: Gryffindor suffers its first loss to Slytherin in six straight years during James's last year in Hogwarts and he's feeling a little down. Lily to the rescue! :D Thanks a ton if you even bother to read this :


A/N: Random story on a random day :)) Hahaha hope you all enjoy my first LilyJames story =D

"60 – 100, Slytherin in the lead!"

The announcement of the score rang out over the Quidditch pitch, echoing among the raised bleachers. A cheer exploded from the sea of green and silver while the walls of red and gold remained silent, shocked faces apparent all around. Slythierin was in the lead for the first time in six years. Bloody hell.

"Prongs!"

The familiar voice snapped James Potter out of his thoughts, the dazed look on his face morphing into one of alert and carefully controlled worry. His best friend was yelling at him a few feet below and to his right.

"Yeah?"

"Don't worry about it. We can still win if you catch the Snitch."

James nodded, the wind whipping past his face and blowing through his robes. A nervous shudder went through him. He smiled at Sirius but a strange, uncomfortable feeling spread through his chest. He couldn't quite place it but he highly doubted it was a good sign.

-break-break-break-

James sat alone in front of one of the common room windows, staring at the Forbidden Forest in the distance and fiddling with the soft threads of the heavy curtains. It wasn't that late yet but everyone else had already gone to rest, having no reason to stay up on this particular night. In his mind, James replayed the events of the day in an endless loop, thinking of all the what if's. The Fat Lady's portrait swung open and he saw a figure climb in from the corner of his eye but James didn't move. It was probably just another disappointed Gryffindor anyway.

"Oh so this is where you've been. As Head Boy, you were supposed to go on a patrol round with me, you know." A soft voice floated down from just above him.

Lily.

James tilted his head up slightly to look at her, his mouth half open like he was about to say something but seemed to think better of it and clamped his mouth shut, turning back to face the glass.

"Why don't you just go to bed like everyone else?" He mumbled.

He heard Lily sigh and move slightly before plopping down next to him on the wide window seat.

"Losing to Slytherin's not a big deal."

James stared at her incredulously. "It IS a big deal."

Lily shook her head. "No, it's not."

"It is."

"It's not."

"It is."

"It's -"

James held up a hand to silence her.

"Okay, I'm not having this argument." He said, a low chuckle escaping him. Lily smiled.

"You can't win all the time."

James cocked an eyebrow. "And why not?"

"Well, that just wouldn't be fair now would it?"

James rolled his eyes and turned back to the window. "Nothing's ever fair."

Outside, a light drizzle had begun falling over the grounds. He smiled slightly. He'd always liked the rain. It was one of the only times when the world seemed to slow down just a little bit and pause for a moment to recover. Now that he thought about it, he was always calmer on a rainy day. Maybe it was because he'd been born on a day just like this one. Perhaps.

James shifted his focus to the reflection in the glass. He could see Lily watching him, probably choosing her words carefully like she always did.

"Actually, if you think about it, life's not all that unfair."

"Really now…"

Lily's reflection nodded at James.

"Yeah, well see, remember last year? And… all our school years before that?"

James nodded slowly, only half listening.

"You… um… kept on trying to go out with me and every single time you asked, I'd refuse. But… throughout all those six years, you've had a perfect Quidditch record."

James leaned his head back on the wall, still watching Lily in the reflection. She was fiddling with her thick red hair, tugging on the ends of a few strands. James felt like laughing and throwing himself off the Astronomy Tower at the same time. She was so obviously unsure on how to make him feel better, James almost felt guilty about feeling bad in the first place.

"So now I've lost a Quidditch match… And nothing good's happened yet. What have I got now?"

A hand slowly slipped into his. The sudden touch startled him and he turned his head quickly to look directly at Lily. She was smiling at him, her head crowned in a halo of orange light flickering from the warm fire. She gave his hand a small squeeze and stood to leave.

"Good night, James. Get some sleep and don't worry…"

Lily slowly pulled her hand back to her side and turned to go.

"…You'll always be a winner to me."


End file.
